Arts Agenda - Winter Wonder-Lounge

Not your typical Christmas pageant, the Echo Lounge Christmas Santacular ditches the whole little-girls-in-holiday-dresses routine for a seasonal assortment of comedy, music and theater.?

If you’ve ever wondered what goes on behind the beard of a mall Santa Claus (and who hasn’t?), the Atlanta Radio Theater Company will enlighten you with performances of its own brand of radio drama. Other segments include a school pageant only a parent could love and office party antics. ?

Dan Bollinger, Tim Sweeney and Justin Welborn present The Gift of the Magpie, a puppet show about a man alone for the holidays who undergoes an odd transformation (without spiked eggnog, for a change) because of a magpie’s song.?

To get your funnybone in the spirit, local comedians John Babcock, Keith Hooker, Mary Kraft and Leslie Sharp perform sketch comedy, holiday-style. For the caroling fanatics, Shannon Tanner and Pam Howe sing the season’s best standards. The pageant also features music and dance by Christy Montero and the King of Terror (the name says it all).?

The Echo Lounge Christmas Santacular is presented Dec. 22-23 at the Echo Lounge, 551 Flat Shoals Ave. Doors open 9 p.m. $10. 404-681-3600.